April 1, 2018

Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord Acts 10: 34, 37-43; 1 Corinthians 5: 6-8; John 20: 1-9 Jesus is risen, as He said; let us rejoice and be glad! What does this mean to me? Am I a believing person? Do I usually need proof before I believe? Do I trust people when they tell me things? What kind of person do I trust? How do I know when to trust them? This is the perfect day and setting to think about my trust level and the people I can trust. Why do I say this? Re-read today’s scriptures and see if you can figure this out. The bottom line is that no one actually saw the Resurrection. Today’s readings tell of the people who saw the empty tomb. I’m sure many others came and looked for themselves to see if they were telling the truth. But no one actually saw the Resurrection. What does that do to my faith? Do I need proof to believe? What do I need to put my trust in people who have witnessed an event, but not first hand? I have to trust them, and I have to know the type of people they are: are they reliable, are they truthful, do they like to embellish things or do they ‘tell like it is’? In today’s readings we are told of the three witnesses to the Resurrection: Mary Magdala, and the apostles Peter and John. Peter shares his story in the Acts of the Apostles and John explains the finding of the empty tomb in his Gospel. In the second reading, Paul tells his readers to focus on things above, things that matter. He shares with the Corinthians that they are to ‘clear out the old yeast’ - how they used to think. Now that Jesus has risen from the dead, what He preached and promised is true. Now We must live what He told us, love as He told us and show how important it is that God loves us and calls each of us to love. So do I live and love as a believer of God, as a person called to be Jesus to all I meet and live with? The first reading is taken from the Acts of the Apostles and starts in the middle of the tenth chapter. Actually to understand what has happened we need to go back to the start of the chapter. Cornelius was a Roman centurion and a Gentile who was “…devout and God-fearing along with his whole household, who used to give alms generously to the Jewish people and pray to God constantly.” He had a vision of an angel of God who came to him and said, “Cornelius…your prayers and almsgiving have ascended as a memorial offering before God. Now send some men to Joppa and summon one Simon who is called Peter.” Peter also had a vision to prepare him to share the food of Cornelius’ household without any qualms of conscience. The next day the two met: a Gentile and a Jewish believer. Peter said, “You know that it is unlawful for a Jewish man to associate with, or visit, a Gentile, but God has shown me that I should not call any person profane or unclean. And that is why I came without objection when sent for.” Cornelius shared his vision and we begin today’s account. Peter starts with a review of the wonderful events beginning in Galilee with John the Baptist’s preaching and ends with Jesus’ death. Peter is privileged to share the miracles and healing, the preaching and good works of Jesus. For all of this good Jesus did, he wad condemned to death, but God’s plan was to show that death is not the end. God raised Jesus. Peter and others witnessed the empty tomb and the appearances of Jesus. “He commissioned us to preach to the people and testify that He is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. To Him all the prophets bear witness, that everyone who believes in Him will receive forgiveness of sins through His name.” John’s account describes the discovery of the empty tomb of Jesus by three people, Mary Magdala, Peter and John the apostle. Each witnessed the empty tomb but they did not interpret their experience in the same way. Mary is the first and she comes alone. She sees that the stone that had sealed the tomb had been removed. She doesn’t look inside. Her initial reaction was that the body had been stolen so she ran to tell Peter and John that Jesus’ body is missing and she doesn’t know where it is. John comes first but doesn’t go in; Peter goes in and sees the burial clothes including the head covering set apart and neatly rolled up. It doesn’t not say anything about Peter’s reaction. It tells us that John “saw and believed.” Was everything beginning to make sense? Not really, we can’t come to this conclusion yet. Jesus predicted His resurrection, it had now happened. The Gospel is asking each of us what we think and believe about the Resurrection of Jesus. How easy is the death of a loved one? It is a powerful experience, whether it is sudden or expected. We are never ready for it. Our culture wants to deny death…we hear these words, maybe said them ourselves, ‘He/she looks so peaceful…they just look like they are sleeping.’ Death is a reality. What is after death? The Resurrection is a mystery and cannot be analyzed or proven. Many are uncomfortable with mystery, yet mystery is a part of our every day life. The witnesses needed something more - a personal encounter with the Risen Christ. They did receive this in the many Resurrection appearances. The Resurrection is a sign that God can be trusted. God didn’t abandon Jesus, nor does God abandon us. Suffering and death now have a meaning in and through faith in Jesus. We heard about the witnesses and today we are the witnesses by how we live as Jesus taught us. Am I living that way? Faith Catholic summarizes it this way. “If the Gospel message ended at the cross, you and I would not be here today. The stories about all the good works, all the miracles, all the teachings of Jesus would be collecting dust on a shelf somewhere. Oh, He would have been seen as a wonderful and compassionate prophet, but He would not be seen as He is today, as the glorified and risen Son of the living God. Every day, we have a decision to make as followers of the Risen One. Each day, we must decide whether we will be observed helping to roll the stone away or trying to keep the stone still in front of the tomb. By our actions — by our witness in the workplace, in our homes and among our neighbors — are we fools for Christ, or do we hang back and let someone else do the heavy lifting? Last night, all round the world, the universal Church grew by leaps and bounds as thousands of new Catholics were welcomed among us as they celebrated the Easter sacraments. Now, on the most sacred of days, each of us will renew our baptismal promises. Once again, we will reject evil and embrace the living God. Let us not doubt, let us not be perplexed. Let us instead come, peer deep inside the empathy tomb, and believe. Alleluia.” So I reflect on: • When have I encountered the risen Christ? • What special memories do I have of family Easters in my childhood? What family traditions did we have? • When did I come to appreciate the significance of Easter? Alleluia, Christ is Risen. Let us rejoice and be glad!